


Shine

by 10milesfromhome



Category: Rise of the Demigods (Podcast)
Genre: Fluff, Other, Stargazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-16
Updated: 2019-10-16
Packaged: 2020-12-20 18:26:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,172
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21061178
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/10milesfromhome/pseuds/10milesfromhome
Summary: While flying away from the Temple of Udea, amidst all the craziness and confusion, Astrid takes some time to sit out on the top of the airship and look at the stars. Kree decides to join her.





	Shine

Madness.

That's all the last few days of all their lives had been. Utter madness. 

Maybe if had just been the threats of murder, or the abduction, or the indoctrination, or the lies, or the obscene levels of invasion then it might just have been manageable. But when it is all of them... Astrid was surprised any of them had lasted this long before attempting to rebel. And all the demigods that had gone before them? All the ones that fell in the Union? The thought made her bristle as much as Luna did when she was in a foul mood. She needed a break from the stress of being a ringleader in demigod teenage dissonance. The airship was spacious but still too... crowded. Too much intensity and slowly simmering bitchiness coming from certain claimed assholes.

Astrid made her way through the bowels of the ship, up through the levels until she came to the ladder leading up to the top hatch. Luna whined and pawed at her, not wanting her to head somewhere she couldn't follow. Astrid looked at Luna, her platinum-white fur and eyes as deep as galaxies. Astrid placed a hand under Luna's jaw.

"It's okay, girl. I'll be safe" she whispered. Luna looked at her concerned before relenting and settling down at the foot of the ladder, eyeing Astrid as she looked down from the ladder. Astrid couldn't help but smile at the big goofball. She hiked the blanket she had taken from her assigned room over her shoulder and proceeded the rest of the way up to the hatch. With one swift twist and click, the hatch popped and she pushed it open. The rush of cold air was a pleasant shock to the system as she climbed out onto the top of the ship. 

There wasn't much in the way of comfort but the ship was moving slow enough that it wasn't uncomfortable to be in the headwind. Astrid unbundled the blanket and wrapped around herself to keep the bulk of the cold off her skin. The night sky was scarred with clouds, obscuring the stars. She could feel them overhead - her divine energy resonating with the giant celestial engines hanging high above them. She sighed, thinking how small they must look to Ius right now. So insignificant, even though she was his claimed child. She sat cross-legged, closed her eyes and tried to picture herself up among the stars. With Ius... with her dads... and Luna.

"Y'know, it's probably not that safe up here" a squawk sounded from behind here. Astrid started and turned to see the familiar sight of a kaleidoscopic Aarakocra. Kree settled down from his fight, perching near her. His hands kept close together, fidgeting slightly. He looked nervous to approach. Astrid rolled her eyes and smiled.  
"It's okay, Kree. I'm fine. Come and sit" she said, touching the space next to her. Kree did as was bidden, tucking his wings neatly behind him. Astrid cast a look to the side, watched his rainbow of feathers ruffle in the headwind. They just sat in silence for a few moments, watching the clouded skies - Astrid occasionally peaking with excitement as the stars shone through, only to be obscured split seconds later. Kree turned to her.

"I, um, like watching stars too" Kree chittered nervously. Astrid turned to look at Kree.  
"It's relaxing... though, finding out that they are tied to my divinity... I guess they mean more now."  
"Uh, yes. I suppose they do."  
"You like watching the stars, Kree?"  
"Well, they are sources of light, and, light can be very pretty, in some ways. If you can see them all."  
Astrid considered the point, nodding her head side to side. The wind whipped around them slightly, sending a chill straight through them and pulling Astrid's hair out of the bun she kept it tied in. Kree flung his wings out to shield them from the brunt of the gale. Once it subsided, they poked their heads out from the makeshift shield. The two smiled at each other and kept trying to spot the stars once more. After a few minutes, Kree came up with an idea.

"What about if we, uh, bridge?" he asked. Astrid looked at him with confusion.  
"What do you want to bridge for?"  
"Uh, well, you are connected to the moon and stars. I am connected to light. And, maybe, if we bridge, we can see the stars more clearly." he said before preening his feathers a little out of anxiety. Astrid smiled.  
"Yes. I'd like to try that. That could work."

They re-positioned themselves until they were sat facing each other, arms outstretched and hands held. Kree nodded at Astrid. They both closed their eyes and took some breaths. An energy flowed out from the pair of them, shimmering in shades of gold, cream and ochre. Astrid could feel the intensity flare between, feel the spectrum of colours in Kree's wings begin to dazzle almost like stars. Soon, that building mass of energy between surged upwards like a geyser. The moment it hit the clouds, it plateaued, spreading across the vast vista of night and pushing each cloud away to leave nothing but the darkness and the stars - clearer than they ever had before. As they pair looked up, they watched as the lustre of each star grew brighter, one by one. As each one illuminated, they seemed to hum with a heavenly, celestial music - a song sweet and haunting enough to cause tears to roll down Astrid's face. There were no words and yet she understood it intimately. It evoked images of her fathers. Of home in the Northern Commonwealth. Of those little moments among all the madness with her new friends. Of Luna. And also images of all that laid to waste. The commonwealth as scorched earth and dust. And of hope. Hope that maybe they could all really do something, change fate.

A short time later, the energy faded. The stream sank back down as the stars dimmed and the clouds returned. The swirling mass of golds began to dissipate and sank back into them with a faint whistle of that song being carried away on the winds.

The two gasped a bit as the intensity of the moment began to fade away, sitting back and feeling a warmth among them. The cold sheer of the wind no longer bothered them. they just... absorbed the majesty of what had happened. 

Before either of them could speak, there was a ruckus from inside the ship. The two frowned as they got up and began heading back the ways they came. Kree turned to Astrid just before she reached the hatch.

"Hey, uh, Astrid."

She turned to him.

"Yes, Kree?"  
"Thank you for that. I am glad we're friends." He crooked a smile at her before letting out a squawk and leaping off and soaring round to the carriage of the ship. Astrid grinned as she headed back down through the ladder towards an excited Luna.


End file.
